Eliminate menstrual shame, Promote social inclusion, Advocate for gender equality
PADS.NOW
PADS.NOW focuses on menstruation, women’s physiology, and related social issues, and strives to create an environment where people face and talk about menstruation. Our core project is the sanitary napkin sharing box. We believe in the power of community and work closely with student menstruation societies and charitable organizations from Beijing, Changsha, the Yunnan-Burma border and other places. Our international partners span the globe, from the United States to Costa Rica to New Zealand.
By 2024, we have reached …
school and charity partnership globally
Millions of women around the world are affected by menstrual poverty, especially students and women at the bottom of society in poor areas. According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), about 500 million women lack access to safe and hygienic menstrual products. Menstrual shame exacerbates the problem, with many women unable to get the help they need because they are too ashamed to talk about it.
A group of like-minded high school students who hope to make a difference for the female community
Pads.Now was initiated by high school students from Beijing Academy in 2022 and has continued to this day.
The Care for Women
In the fall of 2021, two girls witnessed the dilemma of a female classmate borrowing sanitary napkins in class due to sudden menstruation.
They never want a girl to have this kind of inconvenience again! So, they hit it off and founded the Pads.Now sanitary napkin project, which sets up sanitary napkin mutual aid boxes in each toilet of the school to help girls solve their legitimate physiological needs in time. Over the past year, the Pads.Now team has grown to provide convenience to more and more women, forming a cross-school impact.
Today, the first high school student menstruation program alliance in China, Pads. Now, has been formed. Join us, focus on menstruation, focus on female physiology and related social issues, right now!
The Now Box
We establish boxes in the women’s toilets containing sanitary napkins for students, teachers and female staff to borrow in case of emergency. The box is self-service, and the borrower is encouraged to return one sanitary napkin within a week to maintain the lasting operation. To ensure sustainable operations, volunteers visit all sites on campus each week to refill, clean and adjust the boxes. We expect the box to improve the menstrual experience for many people, providing them with convenience and peace of mind.
Changing Social Cognition
Eliminate Mentual Shame
We hope to let women no longer feel embarrassed by menstrual problems and face the shame of menstruation directly. Sanitary napkins are not personal items they should feel embarrassed about, on the contrary, they are a convenient and necessary product.
Enhance Social Inclusion
We aim to promote the provision of free menstrual products in schools, companies and public places. Support for women’s health rights has been seen by more people.
Advocate Gender Equality
We wish to reduce the impact of humiliation and gender discrimination caused by menstruation on women, raise the public’s awareness of these issues, and promote gender equality.
“I believe there is a need for all people to understand menstruation, girls and boys. Since this is not a subject in school, I feel it is our duty to bring this knowledge to you.”
The Expansion of Social Influence
2023
In less than four months, we introduced the NOW BOX program to six project teams and delivered free pad kits to these project teams to help them set up pad sharing boxes on campus. Our partners cover Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, the United States, and Costa Rica.
2023
The URAP Research group in UC Berkeley’s gender Studies program interviewed us for our project.
In addition, we also stood out from many projects and were selected by the “Leadership Innovation Lab” by submitting a project proposal and received $650 in project funding.
2024
Pads.Now partnered with Purcotton to obtain a total of approximately 25,000 sanitary napkins, 100 sanitary napkin sharing boxes and posters. Under the auspices of Purcotton, Pads.Now has connected new schools and charities to diverse audiences in more developed cities, poor areas, the Yunnan-Burma border, ethnic minorities and people with disabilities.
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Nothing is impossible to a willing heart.
Pads.Now